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002 - Growing Pains

Growing Pains State of the World ▲ Locations ▼ Bestiary
OOC ▲ Comments A Light In The Darkness
Light seems to have been especially tricky for the world to comprehend, but it finally, finally seems to have figured things out. Light comes from more than just the sky, and now signs and lamps that were once dark have begun to glow brightly. From the Wall Market's dazzling exhibition of color to the dimmed street lamps of the City of Tears, the whole world has been made bright and lively once more without losing the comfort and tranquility that darkness brings. Even the broken screens of the Hammerlocke Stadium give off a pleasant glow, and the world doesn't seem to care that some lights need electricity to stay on - lights are simply lights, as far as the world seems concerned.

Unfortunately, these new lights are a little too simple. Without any need for a power source, there's no way to turn the lights off - if something is deemed a light source, it will always function as a light source. The only way to stop it is to destroy the object beyond recognition, but that might not be the most practical solution. Covering up the lights is the next best thing, but it's a task that's easier with some sources than others. At least no one needs to sleep yet.

Difficulties aside, now seems like the perfect time to start exploring all those new corners of the world that were previously too dark to navigate. Fire is an easy, safe and portable light source that anyone can use, and it even puts itself out after awhile. Just be careful not to get stuck in the dark by a stray breeze.

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Who's Hungry?
Animals need to eat. People need to eat. These are simple facts that people lost in the strange, changing landscape all seem to be well aware of, yet appear to not apply to this world. That is not to say that people can’t eat or drink, for many people do, but there is no actual need. Eating provides nothing but the knowledge that one has eaten, and anyone might go without food entirely. Lately, some might have found eating has become more satisfying and fulfilling an act, as though food is providing them with a vaguely-defined something they didn’t get before. It doesn’t seem to mean much in the grand scheme of things, but perhaps it allows them some sense of normality.

When hunger sets in, it’s sudden. Every person, whether or not they ever needed to eat in their homeland, is hit with a powerful, overwhelming sense of hunger, to the point it feels that if they do not eat they will soon starve. Those who have never eaten in all their time here might easily find themselves so hungry they can barely even move, and have little choice but to eat. Fortunately, food is plentiful. If it can be put in the mouth, chewed and swallowed, it is food, and thus will give a person temporary relief from their hunger. What goes in does not appear to come out, instead simply becoming part of that person and revitalizing them. How long it takes to feel hungry again seems entirely random, and each time there is no lead up - someone is either fine, or they are starving, without any in-between.

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Starving Mad Beasts
When people suddenly remember hunger, so too do the animals of the world. For some creatures this isn't an issue - the tall-necked beasts continue to graze on the treetops like they always have, and the smaller creatures seem content with snacking on whatever small scraps they can find. Not all creatures are so easily satisfied, however, and the more aggressive ones have turned to attacking other species for food.

The vicious water dragons are quick to clamp their mouths on anything within reach... but, lacking teeth, this doesn't amount to much. Still, they're as persistent as ever, and in a way their inability to viciously devour their prey only makes them more dangerous. These beasts are starving, and for all their skill in chasing down prey they can do little to actually eat their catch, which means they're constantly on the hunt and out to get anything that moves. Perhaps it might even be a good idea to help them out, if feeding the fish might make them a little less aggressive.

The machines are far better equipped for hunting, and all the more dangerous now that they're hungry enough to take a bite out of someone. Death is not a concept the world understands, so it's not like they're doing any permanent harm, but it's still a bit unnerving to see animals limping by with bite-sized chunks taken out of them. They haven't had a taste of people yet, but it doesn't seem like it'll be long before they try.

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Mushroom Hunting
Mushrooms are a new sight within the world, and a perfect snack to satisfy that sudden debilitating hunger! Harvesting them can be a bit of a problem, however. For one, they are massive, and the task of cutting one down and breaking it into edible chunks is made much easier with a group of people than one person working alone. Finding the mushrooms in their dark habitats may also be difficult... although, it is much easier to spot a mushroom the size of an entire person compared to something much smaller.

The real problem with mushroom hunting is where they can grow, which is nearly anywhere indoors. Though light now comes from other sources besides the sky, there are still buildings with dark corners that might suddenly acquire a giant mushroom or two (or three, or four) if left alone. And if those mushrooms are allowed to remain, they may just continue to grow, and grow, and grow...

So, if you don't want giant mushrooms bursting through your roof, it might be a good idea to keep an eye out for them before that happens.

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code bases by tricklet

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What's this? A friend who's not one of the weird big people? Well, first the little creature is going to gulp down the food, because mine, but once that's done it'll return the friendly greeting.

"Ah, how kind of you! I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come along."

Probably moped for a bit, then found something to eat himself when he got tired of that, really.

This time, she laughs more openly, a shake of her head as she reaches out a hand to him, trying to inspire him to sit up. Lying flat on the ground like that can't exactly be comfortable, right?

"You would've been fine, I promise! Felix and I had to find food for ourselves while we were hungry... it wasn't fun, but we made it work, you know?"

With her companion introduced - and doing a good job of introducing himself to the young man's friend too - it's probably a good idea to tell him her name, too.

"I'm Rinoa, by the way."

Well, it's not too uncomfortable, but it's not ideal, no. Granted, he doesn't exactly need assistance getting up, either, but he's not exactly going to decline the hand so kindly offered.

"Which is why you've taken to carrying extra now, I presume?"

That much is pretty obvious, but this gives him a chance to compliment her on her forethought. Ladies like that sort of thing, right?

"I am Merlin."

Rinoa smiles at him as she helps him sit, only then disengaging her hand, nodding in response to the question. Yes, it's obvious perhaps, but there's still more about it that he needs to know, so...

"Mm. Especially because time is so weird here. It's probably a good time to keep some with you, too. Especially if you have a friend following you!"

And then her hand goes out again, offering a shake even though she only just pulled it back. "It's nice to meet you, Merlin!"

"More like an annoyance."

Not that he's ever bothered to do anything to seriously discourage the small creature, but that's beside the point.

"The pleasure's all mine, I'm sure."

She laughs at that.

"How can you find them annoying? They have a lot of love to give, you know? This one's Felix, and so far we take care of each other."

At the sound of his name, the animal chirps, a cheerful sound in their direction.

"Anyway, if he's going to follow you around, you should call him something, right? And make sure to have enough food for both of you."

"Evidently you haven't seen this one in action," Merlin replies dryly. Which, speaking of, the little fellow appears to have decided to start stalking slowly towards Merlin, apparently after is long hair. The mage himself ignores it.

"And I imagine that one can fend for itself just fine, if it wanted."

Rinoa shakes her head, not sure if she should be amused or bothered by how determined he is to ignore the creature that clearly wants his attention. "I'm sure he could fend for himself," she agrees - after all, she's seen Felix angry and she has no reason to think any of his friends would behave differently - "but if he likes you, is there a reason you'd rather be alone?"

There's a pause, and then the girl's hands find her hips, a huff of amusement on her breath. "Oh, no. Don't tell me you're another one of those guys who's determined not to need anyone else..."

He doesn't really seem like the type, not with the dramatics earlier, but then maybe he'll tell her the real reason if that's not the case.

Well, the little fellow doesn't seem to be terribly bothered by the arrangement, so probably amused. Especially since for all Merlin ignores the critter, he makes no move to actually try to shoo or chase it away. Or not unless it starts actually pulling and chewing on his hair or something, but right at the moment that's not an issue.

"Oh no, having others around to help out is much better than doing it all myself!" He might be a bit more convincing if he put more feeling into it, but he still manages at least some bit of cheerfulness. "But, well, some people just are a little hard to get along with, hmm?"

He means himself. He doesn't get along with people well.

Rinoa raises her eyebrows at that. The implication of what he's saying is clear, and it's not entirely a surprise, given how melodramatic he was being before. But there's still something kind of sad about it, right? In Rinoa's mind, anyone can get along with anyone, if they're willing to put the effort into trying.

Then again, if the lack of conviction is anything by which to judge, maybe the problem isn't the effort others put into him?

Even so, it's not in her nature not to try.

"You know, I think I have to disagree. I get along with most people I meet... Even the ones other people say are difficult."

Merlin finds relating to people... difficult, to say the least. But he also dislikes talking about that, partly because of that very difficulty. It's much easier to act friendly and a bit silly while still keeping people at arm's length, if that.

"Oh? You must be quite the easygoing individual, then, not to mention fortunate."

Easygoing... maybe. Fortunate... maybe that too. But the truth is...

"Actually, I think it's just that I'm stubborn," she admits, a playful smile pulling at the corners of her lips. "If there's someone I want to talk to, I'll find a way to make it happen, no matter what!"

Even if it means pretending to hypnotize them into liking her.

"Is that weird?"

"No more than anyone else!"

He actually means that. He's known and observed a lot of people, 'weird' is far more common than 'normal', in his experience.

"Though you could also just have yet to meet someone more stubborn than yourself, I suppose."

Rinoa laughs at that. He's right - it's entirely possible that she just hasn't met someone who happens to be more stubborn than she is. She hasn't thought of it that way before, but...

"So would you guess you're more or less stubborn than I am, Merlin?" That playful, flirty tone is still in her voice, her eyes bright and warm.

"Who knows?" Merlin says with a shrug. And perhaps just a hint of a sly look.

He is over a thousand years old, after all, he's had a lot of time to learn to be stubborn if he wants to.

Rinoa laughs again. He doesn't not know, she thinks - he's just refusing to tell her. And isn't that stubborn on its own?

"I guess now I have a mission to find out or something, right?" It's said with an amused smile. He's an interesting guy, this Merlin. Perhaps she'll be able to make a new friend out of it, too.

Hopefully she's up for quite the challenge, as Merlin's spent a long, long time indeed avoiding getting close to most people. And naturally has trouble truly relating in the first place, to boot.

"Do you, now? Then I wish you l--"

Remember how that cabbit-bird was sneaking and stalking around Merlin earlier? After spending some time pouncing and batting at his hair and robes, it suddenly leaps up and, grabbing a large bunch of hair in its beak, clamps down and yanks.

"Cath Palug II, you cut that out right now!!" Merlin whirls around at the critter, which promptly zooms away. Then stops once safely out of reach to turn around and hunker down, watching, clearly enjoying this 'game' it's playing.

She can't help it; when the creature leaps up to playfully grab at his hair, Rinoa has to hide another laugh behind her hand. She shouldn't laugh; it looks like it hurt, but not only can she not get over how adorable Felix's little twin is, she's pretty sure that what Merlin just said was a name of some sorts.

"Cath Palug II?" she repeats, not entirely sure she's pronounced it right. "Is that his name?" And here she thought he was just an 'annoyance'.

With a smile, Rinoa reaches down, reaching into her pouch for another morsel of food. "Come here, boy. Stop bullying your dad and take some more food, okay? You can't keep hurting him or he'll kick you out, you know?"

As a matter of fact, it didn't really hurt worth mentioning, otherwise Merlin probably wouldn't have been tolerating this kind of behavior at all. Or perhaps more accurately, Merlin's used to much worse roughhousing and is a fair bit tougher than his flowery appearance might suggest, so it doesn't particularly bother him.

"Ah, well, if Cath Palug ever found out, he'd be quite annoyed!" Merlin replies, evidently assuming that it was 'the second' part of the name causing the confusion.

Of course, that begs the quest of who/what the original Cath Palug is, but he doesn't seem particularly inclined to volunteer that!

In any case the creature--Cath Palug II--looks over when she calls out to it. It's still a bit shy or wary, but it does recognize the food being offered now, so after a moment of a slow, cautious approach, it quickly nabs the morsel and then scurries off again to eat it.

She smiles as the creature - Cath Palug II - rushes over to grab the food from her hand before running away again, and then she looks up at Merlin again. Of course, she has no idea who the original is, although she figured that there was likely another, based on the name.

"It's just that you were acting like he was more like an annoyance than a friend. But if you've named him..." The smile becomes playful again. "That sounds kinda like a friend to me, you know? Does he follow you everywhere you go, now?"

And then, after a moment, the next question follows: "So if he's the second, who was the first?"

"It is an annoyance." If anything, because he finds having to deal with anyone questioning it annoying. He shrugs at her questions, though.

"Cath Palug is my familiar. Not that he ever bothered to act much like it." And isn't here, obviously. "That one started following me, and while it's no use bothering now, having a familiar here could come in handy."

Yep, he's just tolerating it because it'd make for a convenient familiar later, should his powers start working again. That's definitely all there is to it, nothing more!

Her head tilts, curiosity gleaming in her eyes. (Sorry, Merlin.) "Familiar?" She thinks she's heard the term before, in some of the fantasy stories she's read in the library. "Isn't that, like... the animal companion of a magician, or something?"

Huh. Wouldn't that make Angelo - and now Felix - her familiars?

Or would that be Squall? The thought makes her lips quirk into a smile. Surely a familiar isn't all that different from a knight...

Well, this at least he doesn't mind explaining so much, especially if it distracts from topics related to his feelings on things.

"Somewhat. A proper familiar is bound and connected to the mage by contract, and can be used to aid the mage in various ways. Animals are one option, but there are other possibilities as well."

Merlin just happens to be utterly indifferent to what's normally the biggest risk of using a live animal for one: his last familiar was a powerful magical beast to begin with, so clearly a new one becoming that later isn't a concern.

Her brows raise. So if her guess was correct, and Merlin claims to have a familiar back home...

"Does that mean you're a mage? If you have a familiar?"

With the people she's met here, it's not really a surprise that there are others who possess magical powers in their own worlds. Actually, the biggest surprise is that he's not afraid to talk about it...

Rinoa's lips purse, a thoughtful expression on her features.

"Aren't people scared of you?"

"Exactly."

He's not at all shy about admitting it, no. If anything, he's more inclined to boast. He does, though, raise an eyebrow at her question.

"There are always people who fear anyone who has more power than they do, certainly. But for the most part, not really. Not unless I give them reason to, of course."

002 - Growing Pains

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